*		Today in Black History - May 12		*

1896 - Juan Morel Campos joins the ancestors in Ponce, Puerto Rico. He	
	was a musician and composer who was one of the first to integrate
	Afro-Caribbean styles and folk rhythms into the classical European
	musical model. He was considered the father of the "danza."       

1898 - Louisiana adopts a new constitution with a "grandfather clause" 
	designed to eliminate African American voters.

1902 - Joe Gans (born Joseph Gaines) becomes the first native-born African 
	American to win a world boxing championship, when he defeats Frank
	Erne in one round for the World Lightweight Crown.  He will be 
	elected to the Boxing Hall of Fame in 1954.

1910 - The Second NAACP conference opens in New York City.  The three day
	conference will create a permanent national structure for the 
	organization.

1916 - Albert L. Murray is born in Nokomis, Alabama.  He will become an author 
	of several works of nonfiction, among them the influential collection 
	of essays, "The Omni Americans: New Perspectives on Black  
             Experience and American Culture." His other works will include "South 
             to a Very Old Place," "The Hero and The Blues," "Train Whistle 
             Guitar," "The Spyglass Tree," "Stomping The Blues," "Good Morning 
             Blues," and "The Blue Devils of Nada."

1926 - Paulette Poujol-Oriol is born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. She will become
	a well-known literary personality in Haiti. She will be best known for
	her innovative creative expression.  Her works will include "Prayers 
	for Two Vanished Angels" and "The Crucible."

1926 - Mervyn Dymally is born in Cedros, Trinidad. He will become the first
	African American elected as lieutenant governor of California and 
	will be elected to Congress in 1980, where he will serve for 12 
	years.

1929 - Samuel Nujoma is born in Etunda, South West Africa (now Namibia). He
	will become a nationalist politician and the first president of
	Namibia. He will remain in exile for thirty years from 1959 to 1989
	when he will return to Namibia and win a seat in the National
	Assembly. He will vacate this seat in 1990 when he is elected
	president.

1933 - Henry Hugh Proctor joins the ancestors in Brooklyn, New York at the
	age of 64. He had been the pastor of Nazarene Congregational 
             Church for thirteen years. Prior to coming to New York, he had been 
             pastor of the First Congregational Church in Atlanta, Georgia for 
             twenty four years, where he had been instrumental in working with 
             local whites in order to reduce racial conflicts in the city.

1934 - Elechi Amadi is born in Aluu, Nigeria. He will become a novelist
	whose works will illustrate the tradition and inner feelings of 
	traditional tribal life of his people. He will be known for his works
	"The Concubine," "Sunset in Biafra: A Civil War Diary," "The Great
	Ponds," "The Slave," "Estrangement," "Isiburu," "Peppersoup," "The
	Road to Ibadan," "Dancer of Johannesburg," and "Ethics in Nigerian
	Culture." His writings reflect his upbringing as a member of the Igbo
	ethnic group in Nigeria.

1951 - Former U.S. Congressman Oscar Stanton DePriest joins the ancestors 
             at the age of 80 in Chicago, Illinois. He had been the first African 
	American elected to the U.S. Congress since Reconstruction and the 
	first-ever African American congressman from the North.

1955 - Samuel ("Toothpick Sam") Jones, of the Chicago Cubs, becomes the 
	first African American to pitch a major league no-hitter, against 
	the Pittsburgh Pirates.

1958 - At a summit meeting of national African American leaders, President
	Dwight D. Eisenhower is sharply criticized for a speech which, in
	effect, urges them to "be patient" in their demands for full civil 
	and voting rights.

1967 - H. Rap Brown replaces Stokely Carmichael as chairman of the Student
	Non-Violent Coordinating Committee.

1969 - Kim Fields (later Freeman) is born in Los Angeles, California.  She
	will become an actress as a child, starring in the sit-com, "The
	Facts of Life" (1979-1988).  She will continue her television career
	on the "Living Single" show, which will premier in 1993.  

1970 - Ernie Banks of the Chicago Cubs hits his 500th home run. 

1970 - A racially motivated civil disturbance occurs in Augusta, Georgia.  
	Six African Americans are killed.  Authorities say five of the 
	victims were shot by police.

1976 - Wynona Carr joins the ancestors. She had been a gospel singer who 
             was best known for her rendition of "The Ball Game." Her other 
             recordings were "Each Day," "Lord Jesus," "Dragnet for Jesus,"
             "Fifteen Rounds for Jesus," "Operator, Operator," "Should I Ever Love
             Again," and "Our Father." 

1991 - Hampton University students stage a silent protest against President
	George Bush's commencement address to highlight their opposition to 
	his civil rights policies.

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